Check out the latest episode of The Art of Life. Right here. Fresh. With @kojobaffoe and me.
It features the new Merc SLK 250 and my favorite tablet ever!
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steve
The Art of Life: Episode 8
Bionic Skeleton for the everyday consumer NEW GADGET
Time to get serious for a moment. Gratefully, very few people know what it’s like to be paralysed, but those who do live an unenviable existence. Most of these people (that I’ve met anyway) might not be as able-bodied as the rest of us, but their mental strength and determination makes us look like toddlers with ADD and ADHD.
Now, thanks to Ekso Bionics, the disabled could soon be kicking us able-bodied fools in the bum the way they do in their heads.
Ekso Bionics have developed and put on sale (in hospitals and rehab centres for the moment) a fully-functional, battery-powered bionic exo-skeleton that powers the lower limbs of a disabled person.
The device clips onto the outside of the person’s body and movement happens when leaning forward and the machine takes a step. Motors on-board do the work.
Think of the possibilities and the diseases this device aids in: spinal cord injuries, MS, muscular dystrophy…
Epic!
ekso bionic suit: wearable robot allows paraplegics to walk from designboom on Vimeo.
Aston Martin DBC Concept CAR PORN
It’s a concept that will make your eye’s bleed in the most pleasurable way possible. Better than seeing ice-cream melt on a tropical island holiday.
This concept comes from the pen of Samir Sadikhov, the same man who gave us the Lamborghini Urus SUV concept a while back. This time he’s opted for something stylish, timeless and classic. And we thank you sir.
This DBC concept is supposed to be a mid-engine RWD layout and does away with the long hood of traditional Astons.
Off you go ladies and gents. Perve.
New Nike #possibilities Campaign
Nike re-aligns with a new campaign labeled #possibilities. I’m not one who goes in for the marketing fluff, but this is a cool ad.
The Art of Life Episode 7
A fresh new episode of the Art of Life. Lots of new stuff to talk about including all things Intel straight out of my visit to San Francisco
It’s me next to @kojobaffoe again and @squinzo is behind the camera. Thanks once again to 21 Tanks for letting us drink their beer.
Stingray tent hangs in the trees NEW GADGET
Inspired by the Stingray, its clear where this off-the-ground tent got its name and beyond that, I’s going to make you the talk of the wife-swapping tent site.
Created by tent makers Tentsile, the Stingray tent is truly versatile, capable of being set up on the ground as a normal tent or up in the trees, suspended in the air. The Stingray is good for 3 seasons, four if you’re in South Africa.
The interior forms a spacious triple hammock living space, accessed via a hatch in the floor or via a large side door if you haven’t found any trees sufficiently spaced.
A rope ladder hangs from the bottom door to let you get in and there are a number of extra accessories available including luggage nets, tablet pouches, shoe nets and mobile phone pockets. But at the price of this thing, we’ll just go with the tent and use some plastic bags for our gadgets.
Obviously it’s waterproof and is manufactured to carry 3 adults and their gear (a max of about 400kg). They also reckon it’ll take you only 10 minutes to set up in the trees. Good luck with that.
Get it: R19 980
From: www.tentsile.com
DSTV Explora now live in SA. It’s enhanced
There are so many new enhancements on DSTV’s next generation decoder that we don’t know where to start.
It’s called the Explora, and it’s got twice the hard drive space as it’s predecessor as well as a whole new User Interface that we’re glad to say makes very little use of the colors blue and yellow. They’ve taken a page out of modern smart TV’s book and now include covers, logos and pictures. Much more pleasing to the eye.
The huge 2 TeraByte hard drive means that users can record 220 hours of high definition television, which equates to approximately 100 movies or 150 TV series episodes.
“Series stacking” is another new feature which makes two episodes of a selected series available on demand. This will later be expanded to 4 episodes.
There are now also always 20 movies waiting for you to watch in Box Office and there’s a nice new remote which doesn’t have an irritating play/pause button like the old one.
Although the Explora uses the reliability of satellites to send images, it is also built with the future of the internet in mind. This means the promise of a broadband connection being added to the device someday soon so you can surf the net from the comfort of your couch.
Get it: R2 500
From: DSTV.co.za
Playable Drum-Kit poster NEW TECH
London based paper fans Novalia have developed a poster that users can play like a drum kit using their fingertips.
The interactive paper works kinda the same way as a touchscreen does and all the while it acts as the speaker too.
Available also is a Bluetooth version for you to connect your iDevice to and play any of the 7 different drum sounds.
Obviously this isn’t where this tech will end. Think of packaging that screams at you from the aisles or bus shelter adverts that talk to. Or even books that read themselves to you. The possibilities are endless.
Support them: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/839415566/novalia-drum-poster
MINI’s camping and expedition getaway car NEW CONCEPT
I’ve been harping on for years that one day soon we’re going to see the hatch market completely dominate all other markets. We’ve seen it go “big and family” in the form of the SUV, but I’ve been waiting for it to creep its way into the 4×4 market and start making the likes of the mighty Hilux feel nervous. Let’s coin the term: all terrain hatch? 4×4 hatch? Hatch-by-4?
Guys and girls, today we have another step in that direction with the release of Mini’s camping + expedition getaway car concepts.
Perhaps it’s due to the fact that I love music festivals and when I go, I don’t bother pitching a tent. Instead I pop the back of the hatch I’m driving open, cover the hole with a mosquito net and catch some Z’s. Too MacGyver for Mini though.
The philosophy here is: “maximum touring pleasure with minimal footprint”, and there are 3 in the range: ‘the Clubvan camper’, ‘the Countryman ALL4 camp’ and ‘the Cowley’; a tiny camper van, a rooftop tent and a compact caravan respectively.
The MINI Clubvan camper
This is meant to be your “home on wheels”, but I prefer “Bachelor pad on wheels” since it only sleeps one so the girl you’re with can’t sleep over.
Sleeps one inside, extendible kitchen area with propane stove and chest fridge and a water tank with a handheld shower. This car comes standard with on-board navigation and a TV and heater.
The MINI cowley caravan
This attachment allows you to join the caravan crew and annoy travelling tourists on busy bi-ways. Still, looks good and is functional.
The Cowley is fitted with two comfortable beds; a twin-burner gas stove and a water tank complete with pump and sink. A solar-panel then charges the on-board battery with a 230-volt connection that powers the fridge, television and audio equipment.
The MINI Countryman ALL4 camp
Two great innovations above, but neither of them check what for me is the most important feature of the future camping hatch: 4-wheel drive.
Thankfully the Mini Countryman has AWD so it’ll take on more rough terrain than most current SUVs. The tech to fit a diff and a low range gearbox to a car the size of an Audi A1 will come in time. Meanwhile…
This Countryman comes with a roof-top that accommodates two people comfortably. Also has space for a mountain bike and all folds away into a box in no time.
